Depending on where telecommunication equipment is installed, different telecommunication standards apply. For example, in the United States the main set of telecommunication standards are Network Equipment Building Standards (xe2x80x9cNEBSxe2x80x9d) by Bellcore. In Europe, the main set of standards comes from the European Telecommunication Standards Institute (xe2x80x9cETSIxe2x80x9d).
Many standards of both NEBS and ETSI coincide; however, many standards differ. For example, in the United States, chassis typically utilize cables exiting the chassis from both the front and the rear of the chassis; therefore, aisle access is supplied from both sides. In Europe chassis require front-sided access only. Accordingly, in Europe telecommunication chassis are placed back-to-back to save space.
These conflicting standards means that two different chassis assemblies are required, one for the United States and one for Europe. This means that telecommunication equipment manufacturers and installers need to support two different chassis. Manufacturing two different chassis assemblies wastes considerable time and money. In addition, having to manufacture two different chassis assemblies causes telecommunication manufacturers to lose some control of inventory.
The challenges in the field of telecommunications continue to increase with demands for more and better techniques having greater flexibility and adaptability. Therefore, a need has arisen for a convertible telecommunication chassis and method for converting same.
In accordance with the present invention, a convertible telecommunication chassis and method for converting same is provided that addresses disadvantages and problems associated with previously developed chassis and methods.
According to one embodiment of the invention, a method for converting a telecommunication chassis includes providing a telecommunication chassis that includes a housing having a front and a rear, a backplane coupled to the housing, and a cable interface board having an inside surface and an outside surface coupled to the housing adjacent the rear of the housing, the outside surface facing the same general direction as the rear of the housing, and rotating the cable interface board such that the outside surface of the cable interface board faces the same general direction as the front of the housing.
Some embodiments of the invention provide numerous technical advantages. For example, a technical advantage of one embodiment of the present invention is that a convertible telecommunication chassis is manufactured that is capable of conforming to telecommunication standards in both the United States (i.e., NEBS) and Europe (i.e., ETSI). This conversion ability saves considerable time and money because only one chassis needs to be manufactured instead of two. In addition, a telecommunications chassis manufacturer can precisely control inventory with respect to both NEBS chassis and ETSI chassis.
Other technical advantages are readily apparent to one skilled in the art from the following figures, descriptions, and claims.